PhD defence

Structural biochemistry of the pentraxins

• D.P. Noone

Date

Tuesday 12 March 2024

Time

10:00 - 10:45

Location

Academy Building
Rapenburg 73
2311 GJ Leiden

Supervisor(s)

• Prof. dr. A.J. Koster
• dr. T.H. Sharp

Summary

This thesis uses a mixture of biochemical and structural approaches to interrogate the pentraxins; a family of proteins in the innate immune system that defend you from pathogens and repair damage via their interactions with the complement system. The thesis explores the behavior of these proteins in the inflammatory niche, the nervous system and how they activate the complement system. We achieved this by resolving the structures of many pentraxin complexes via electron microscopy, allowing us to see their molecular architecture. This is akin to seeing the blueprint to a building or machine and hypothesizing the function of these objects. We supplemented this with functional biochemical analysis testing how these components worked, giving us a more complete picture. We also suggested and tested possible therapeutic agents on the pentraxins to try and control their function. It is of our belief that the innate immune system can be controlled in diseases and is relatively untapped compared to interventions targeting the adaptive immune system such as vaccines. We hope this work can contribute to that aim.

PhD dissertations

Approximately one week after the defence, PhD dissertations by Leiden PhD students are available digitally through the Leiden Repository, that offers free access to these PhD dissertations. Please note that in some cases a dissertation may be under embargo temporarily and access to its full-text version will only be granted later.

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